In search of wisdom...

15 things, Brand and Agencies need to understand about SOCIAL MEDIA.

• Never underestimate the resources, time, dedication and passion it takes to engage and cultivate relationships across multiple communities. It's just not the same for any two networks.
• Just like other marketing medium, Social Marketing requires a dedicated strategy, goal, metrics, and a tactical plan.
• Always remember to ask yourself two questions, "Why do we want to participate?" and "What do we want to achieve out of it?"
• Not the entire social media shall be relevant to you, instead there are hubs across social media that should be of prime focus to you like in case of a Bollywood celebrity the prime focus can be Facebook, MySpace, Orkut and their own blog whereas Digg, BigAdda and others can be taken care later.
• Social Media marketing is not an overnight process; it takes time, sincerity, focus and cultivation.
• Participate as a member and not a marketer.
• Relationships are based on mutual benefits, so think about what you bring to the table and why before you jump in.
• Social Media isn't a catalyst to summon marketing for marketing's sake. It's an opportunity to engage with groups of people by tapping into conversations that mutually serve the benefits of the very people we wish to reach.
• This isn't broadcast marketing. This is one-to-one discussions that can provide incredible value back to you and your company as long as the rules of engagement are clear and not manipulated.
• It takes time, patience, sincerity, and value. This is about relationships and it's much bigger and more relevant than just you and the company you represent.
• Conversations are taking place online and it will continue to take place with or without you. It's better to be there and take active participation in it.
• There are tools available to do so; these tools are more than you would ever know, with more tools introduced every week.
• Social Media is much more than user-generated content. It's driven by people in the communities where they communicate and congregate. They create, share, and discover new content without our help right.
• In Social Media, communities take the form of social networks and the communal groups within them. People establish associations, friendships, and allegiances around content, objects, products, services, and ideas. How they communicate is simply subject to the tools and networks that people adopt based on the influence of their social graph - and the culture within.
• As marketers you need to decide who you want to concentrate on, the Influencers or the easily influenced.

I hope these would help us all in improving our efforts and practices on the social media platform.

Happy Consumer Engagement!!